I Spent The Day Hanging Out With My 8 Week Old: Here’s How It Went

I Spent The Day Hanging Out With My 8 Week Old: Here’s How It Went

I spent the day hanging out with my baby. Hanging out. Not waiting for nap time to roll around. Not putting her in her swing, hoping she would entertain herself long enough for me to get some stuff done around the house.

I actually hung out with her.

And it was amazing! I actually started doing this last week when I read about what she would be learning during her second leap (yes, I’m on the Leap thing again. I’m telling you. Wonder Weeks. It will change your life!). And, since I’m going to be going back to work full-time soon, I’ve decided to make it a weekly tradition. A way for me to soak up every adorable little bit of my baby girl.

Here’s what we did during our mommy-baby day!

According to The Wonder Weeks, Norah is learning about patterns this leap. Not just visual, but physical, as well. She’s learning about how her body moves and feels. In order to help her with that, we:

Did tummy time

Played the “pull-up game.” I set Norah on my legs, perched at an angle so she was half sitting up. I would then pull her up into a sitting position (very slowly) and let her get used to how that felt.

Take a bath! In the bath, I let her float just a little bit (holding onto her shoulders and keeping her head/ ears above water!) and kick around in the water and feel the waves ripple back over her belly. She loved it!

To help her adjust to the new world of visual patters she’s exploring, we:

Read books. She absolutely loves this! We lay on our backs on the bed, I hold the book over our heads and she is fascinated! She stares and kicks and smiles and it’s so much fun. She loves the bright colors and different pictures.

Look through flashcards. I have a set of black and white flashcards for babies. I’ll sit her on my lap (so she can see how it is feels to sit up) and show her the cards.

Another vessel for patterns she is beginning to master in this leap is her voice. In order to encourage this, we:

Talked. It sounds silly, but you can have conversations with your baby! Lay baby on their back and sit so they can see your face. Begin speaking and wait. When they coo or wiggle or do something “in response,” you can continue the conversation. Baby will continue this back and forth as long as they want (you’ll know they’re done when they look away). This teaches them about conversation, taking turns, and how dialogue works! It also gives them a chance to figure out their vocal chords.

Imitate her sounds. I would also take time to just make the sounds she made back at her. Letting her hear them from someone else establishes them for her.

Reading. Not only would the pictures entertain her, but the sound of my voice would, as well! We read Dr. Seuss, and she loved the rhythmic rhymes and the way my voice bounced along.

We didn’t just play during our day together, though. We also spent time just being together. I nursed her in bed. We snuggled. We napped. We took A TON of selfies. I let my dishes pile up. I left my phone on the nightstand. I soaked up every second of being with her.

And I can’t wait to do it again!

These are just some ways that I spend time with my baby. There are a ton of different recommendations out there! What do you do? How do you bond with your little one? I’m always looking for new ideas!

Aww so special! I love following candokiddo.com on Instagram for ideas for Ellis, she’s an OT it’s ideas and developement/positioning tips in one! I love Busy Toddler for Leagan. Both very “real practical momma’s in my virtual mom-tribe. For Ellis sleep tips I follow takingcarababies on Instagram, but haven’t taken her class.